2 June 2026

Member Spotlight: Vote for Better Accessibility for Visually Impaired People

In the aftermath of last month’s Scottish election, Nicoletta Primo, Lived Experience Policy and Engagement Manager at Sight Scotland & Sight Scotland Veterans, explains why making voting more accessible for visually impaired people is vital

Nicoletta Primo, Lived Experience Policy and Engagement Manager at Sight Scotland. Nicoletta is smiling and has long brown hair.

Voting is one of the most important ways people can have their say in society. It gives us a voice in decisions that affect our lives, our communities, and our future. But for many visually impaired people, voting is not always as simple or as accessible as it should be. 

Unfortunately, these challenges are not limited to election day. They reflect the everyday obstacles faced when accessing information, navigating public spaces and taking part fully in society. Accessibility should not be treated as a problem to fix at the last minute or an optional extra to consider later. Instead, it must be built in from the start and prioritised across all areas of life so that everyone can participate with dignity, independence and equal opportunity. 

Vote for improvements 

Visually impaired voters continue to face a number of challenges when attending polling stations. A key issue is that staff may not always feel fully confident in how to support voters who are visually impaired. This can lead to confusion about what help is available and inconsistent use of accessible voting tools and assistive equipment. Physical barriers also play a part, including poor lighting, unclear signage and layouts that can be difficult to navigate. Information about candidates and the voting process has not always been provided in formats that are easy to access, making it harder for people to make informed choices about who they wish to represent them. 

For many people, there is also a concern about losing their independence. Some are reluctant to ask for help if it means someone else may see how they vote. This can leave people feeling excluded from a process that should be open to everyone. 

“Inclusion and accessibility are not about doing something extra for disabled people. They are about removing unnecessary barriers so that everyone can take part in everyday life.” 

Ahead of the recent Scottish Parliament election, Sight Scotland and Sight Scotland Veterans partnered with the Electoral Management Board for Scotland to deliver training to Returning Officers and more than 900 polling staff. This training focused on helping staff understand the needs of visually impaired voters and the support they are required to provide. 

The training was shaped by people with lived experience of visual impairment, alongside professional expertise from rehabilitation staff. This meant the training focused on the things people actually experience and gave clear, useful ways to support. It aims to improve staff confidence and make voting more consistent and accessible for visually impaired people. 

Accessible voting is part of a much bigger picture. In our 2026 manifesto, Sight Scotland and Sight Scotland Veterans set out what needs to change to improve the lives of people with visual impairments across Scotland. Eye health services are under increasing pressure, with long waiting times for treatment. There is an urgent need for investment, including a commitment to build a new Eye Hospital in Edinburgh. 

We also want to work alongside the new Scottish Government for better access to vision rehabilitation, stronger community eye care, and more consistent support for both children and veterans with visual impairment. 

Vote for change 

There has also been real progress, showing what can be achieved when accessibility is prioritised. Following our Fair Rail campaign, anyone with an Eye +1 National Entitlement Card (NEC) can now travel free by train across Scotland with a companion, at no extra cost. This life changing step came after more than three years of campaigning by Sight Scotland and Sight Scotland Veterans, driven by the voices of service users who highlighted how unfair and inconsistent rail travel had become. Many were forced to pay extra for essential support, making journeys unaffordable, while travelling alone could be unsafe. 

We are delighted to see this change become permanent following a successful pilot that received overwhelmingly positive feedback from more than 1,500 visually impaired card holders. Inclusion and accessibility are not about doing something extra for disabled people. They are about removing unnecessary barriers so that everyone can take part in everyday life. 

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22 May 2026

‘While the challenges are substantial, solutions do exist’: CCPS response to the new Scottish Government

We have responded to the formation of the new Scottish Government after the First Minister appointed his Cabinet and Junior Ministers this week

The Scottish Parliament debating chamber

CCPS has said it is ready to work alongside the new Scottish Government and parliament to build a sustainable social care sector which allows people and communities to thrive. 

Following a vote on Tuesday in Holyrood, John Swinney was appointed as First Minister and was sworn in at a ceremony on Wednesday. He has since appointed his Cabinet and Junior Ministers, including Angela Constance as Cabinet Secretary for Health and Care and Alison Thewliss as Minister for Community Care. 

In response to the announcement of the new government, CCPS CEO Rachel Cackett said: “I congratulate John Swinney on his election as First Minister and all Cabinet Secretaries and Ministers on their new roles.  

“The task ahead of all of us is clearly urgent. Many providers in our membership are facing acute financial and workforce strains, placing their staff and, ultimately, the people they support at risk.  

“While the challenges are substantial, solutions do exist and I believe we already have many of the answers. CCPS, with its members, can help deliver far better outcomes for people – and for this government – if we are alongside as equal partners in much-needed change and public investment can be redirected to fund social care like it matters. 

“In his speech at Holyrood on Wednesday, the First Minister emphasised that he wanted to find common ground and ‘work across party lines’, with a commitment to bring people together ‘to build a country where everyone feels accepted and is able to contribute’.   

“We support this vision absolutely. And for Scottish citizens in need of support to flourish, a vibrant, sustainable and accessible social care and support sector is critical to its delivery. We look forward to working with the government to see meaningful change enacted.” 

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11 May 2026

Following election, ‘MSPs must come together to prioritise social care and support’

CCPS calls on parliamentarians to recognise need for investment

A photo of the exterior of the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, Scotland. Green grass in the foreground, blue sky above.

Following last week’s Scottish election, CCPS congratulates all newly elected MSPs, and those who will be returning to Holyrood.

Like everyone, we are keen to see the shape of our new government. But, however that emerges, cross-party working will clearly be essential. So, we urge all parliamentarians to come together to prioritise social care and support, and fund it like it matters.

The social care system is now under real strain, putting our member organisations and the people they support in jeopardy. But solutions do exist.

We can provide expertise and insight to MSPs on the challenges in social care and offer credible, evidence-based solutions.

We look forward to working with you all collaboratively and as a strategic partner over the 2026-31 parliamentary session.

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10 June 2025

Social care reform bill’s conclusion “far from its original aspiration”

Ahead of today’s Stage 3 parliamentary debate on the Care Reform (Scotland) Bill, we’ve published a briefing outlining our views on final amendments to the legislation

Ahead of today’s Stage 3 debate in parliament on the Care Reform (Scotland) Bill, CCPS has published a briefing outlining its position on key, final amendments to the legislation.

Consideration of the legislation at this stage comes more than four years after publication of the Independent Review of Adult Social Care, led by Derek Feeley, which set out an ambitious vision for social care reform that had widespread support.

However, following the Scottish Government’s decision in January to scrap the original version of the legislation – after a controversial passage through parliament – the re-named Bill is no longer underpinned by most of Feeley’s recommendations, including formation of a National Care Service.

Our briefing focuses on the amendments introduced by MSPs related to commissioning and Fair Work, both of which remain essential to effecting improvement.

However, CCPS’s CEO Rachel Cackett said:

“As the briefing makes clear, we are immensely disappointed that what was described as the biggest public sector reform of a generation is now a much more limited Bill.  A small number of important Stage 3 amendments are attempting to address key elements of a National Care Service otherwise completely lost in the renamed Bill, but this legislation falls far short of the aspirations for much needed change we all signed up to in the Feeley review.

“As a member of the new NCS Interim Advisory Board I have to hope that, with our partners, we can drive the fundamental changes to social care needed now outside of a legislative process that has taken three years. Feeley’s recommendations remain central to CCPS priorities for what comes next, as I know it does for many of our partners.”

In April CCPS,  the Coalition of Carers, Glasgow Disability Alliance, the Health and Social Care Alliance, Inclusion Scotland and Scottish Care, jointly published The National Care Service – Where Now?, a new paper arguing for a return to focus on Feeley’s recommendations including increased investment and clarity of purpose.

Click here to read the briefing

Click here to read The NCS – Where Now?

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26 February 2025

“Success at Westminster, dismay at Holyrood. But on eNICs exemption, we are back in the running”

Rachel Cackett responds to yesterday’s vote in the House of Lords on amendments to the National Insurance Bill – and the passing of the 2025-26 Scottish Budget

So, first the good news. Last night the House of Lords voted through amendments to exempt the vast majority of the health and social care sector from catastrophic NI increases, as set out in the National Insurance Contributions (Secondary Class 1 Contributions) Bill. The Lords also passed a key amendment which would make the government report on the impact of national insurance changes.

Over the past few weeks, we’ve been discussing the National Insurance Bill with MPs and engaging with peers on amendments. Many of our members have shared their own organisation’s perspectives about how the eNICs change would impact them, and the consequences for the people they support and employ. I want to thank all the members of the House of Lords who worked on and laid amendments yesterday, and every single peer who listened and voted for exemption to save social care. We can’t tell you how much your advocacy matters for social care in its time of crisis.

Yesterday’s votes give us hope, but the changes aren’t in the bag yet. Now they go back and forth between the Lords and Commons and we will need a lot of Labour MPs to stand up for what is right here, if these wins are to hold. But yesterday morning we saw no room to manoeuvre; today we are back in the running. We’ll take that for now.

In contrast to events in the Lords, yesterday the Scottish Budget was passed at Holyrood with zero commitment to eNICs cost recovery for providers from the Scottish Ministers and only cursory mentions of the sustainability crisis in our sector. This, despite us sharing compelling evidence of the disastrous consequences the policy will have for not-for-profit providers and the people they support.

Earlier this month we conducted a 24-hour survey of our member organisations. Over 50 members participated, representing a combined expenditure of over £850m, employing around 28,000 staff and supporting over 230,000 people across the whole of Scotland. Amongst the sobering responses, we learned that:

  • 57% of respondents are seriously considering handing contracts back to commissioners next year
  • 67% of respondents are budgeting for 2025-26 on the basis that they only expect to reach financial balance through the use of reserves. And of these providers: 91% would no longer be a going concern within four years, if they continued to reach financial balance through drawing down reserves in this way.

With an election year just over a year away, and with so much at stake for the Scottish people, we are surprised the Scottish Government seems ready to live with the consequences of choosing not to fund our sector and supported people. We are just as surprised that a new UK Labour Government chose to put the entire sector at risk through this deeply ill-judged tax, which disproportionately impacts low- paid women. Looking at headlines from the last couple of weeks from both sides of the border, it seems emergency funds can be found for other things – but not vulnerable people. It was ever thus.

But where both elected governments have failed the sector so far, the Lords have provided. So, our energy now turns back to Westminster and efforts to persuade MPs to see the value of social care – and how destructive the eNICs policy would be. There is – thanks to yesterday’s actions – still track ahead.  Please, UK Labour and Rachel Reeves, don’t waste this opportunity.

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20 June 2024

“A collective voice of people and organisations who all share a common vision”

As CCPS marks its 25th anniversary, Andrea Wood, Chief Executive of Key and Convener of our Board, reflects on the organisation’s contribution since 1999

This summer CCPS celebrates its 25th anniversary as a registered charity, and 27 years since it was founded.

To mark the milestone and share CCPS’s new Priorities, the organisation recently held a special event in the Scottish Parliament. Staff and members were joined by MSPs including Clare Haughey, Convener of the parliament’s Health, Social Care and Sport Committee, Neil Gray,  Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care and Maree Todd, Minister for Social Care, Mental Wellbeing and Sport.

It was a chance to acknowledge three decades of CCPS’ contribution, ranging from its origins as an early, urgent voice for community care providers, with 23 members, to its profile now, representing 89 not-for-profit social care providers across Scotland. A rich diversity of organisations who do vital work, supporting
good lives for Scotland’s people and communities in a way that respects and
values individual choice and control.

Below, members gather at our parliamentary reception at Holyrood on 28 May. Above, CCPS Convener, Chief Executive of Key and blog author Andrea Wood.

 

Guests at the reception reflected on what it means to be part of a collective voice of people and organisations who all share a common vision of a rights and relationship-based approach to social care and support. It’s a vision that, in essence, has not changed over CCPS’s quarter century as a charity, and has at its heart our members’ commitment to ensuring that not-for-profit providers and their staff are recognised and valued as they should be. That’s meant championing the right for people to do a job that they love, but also to be respected, valued and rewarded for the vital work that they do.

Guests filled out cards at the event telling us why they valued social care and support:

After 25 years, CCPS continues to be a respected, influential and authentic organisation, with a reputation based on its values: Creative, Collaborative, Credible, Courageous and Kind. It couldn’t have sustained that reputation without such a talented staff team, now led by Rachel Cackett, and previously by Annie Gunner Logan, who was CEO until 2022.

Through its work CCPS has played a role in the implementation of some of the most ground-breaking developments in social care throughout the years. Changing Lives, Self-Directed Support, the Promise and the Review of Adult Social Care are just a few examples.

All of those achievements have been shaped by the views, experiences and wisdom of CCPS’s members. They wouldn’t have been possible otherwise, and I know that at this important point in its history, its right  that  we celebrate the strength of CCPS’s relationship and dialogue with its membership.

Thinking about the future and how CCPS will play its part, that collective voice of CCPS’s members will continue to be vital in communicating to everyone across Scotland the true value of social care and support.

Members of  the CCPS staff team pictured at the event. From left, Chris Small, Anna Tully, Alison Christie, Rachel Cackett, Nadine Cassidy, Eilidh Shearer, Emma Mathews, Kyle Hylan-Corcoran, Megan Williams and Simon Webster:

Photographs by Andrzej Majdanik. www.haicoo.co.uk LinkedIn: @haicoo_media

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8 February 2024

‘It’s time to Rethink to 13’: MSP briefing published for stage 1 debate on Budget

We’ve produced a briefing for MSPs on Fair Work for Scotland’s social care staff, with an explanation of why the Scottish Government must now reconsider pay for social care staff

We’ve produced a briefing for MSPs on Fair Work for Scotland’s social care staff, with an explanation of why the Scottish Government must now Rethink To 13.

Download and read the briefing

The briefing was sent to a targeted list of MSPs ahead of today’s Stage 1 Debate on the 2024-25 Budget at Holyrood.

It features suggested questions to ask in the chamber on Thursday, key facts and stats on social care pay, and evidence from our current #RethinkTo13 campaign.

The Stage 1 debate on the budget is being held in a period of crisis for the social care sector, with provider organisations increasingly unable to recruit and retain staff due to lack of Fair Work.

As we reported last year, an average of 52% of staff who moved jobs in 2022 left the social care sector altogether (2022 Social Care Benchmarking Report).

Through the Rethink To 13 campaign we’re sharing stories from support workers in the sector about what a pay increase to a minimum of £13 per hour would mean to them and its positive impact on services and people receiving support.

A final debate on the 2024-25 Budget is due to be held at the end of February before it is passed by parliament.

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